Secondly, you can start out reading technical publications in those areas. Getting in to the habit of reading research papers takes time. Slowly you have to reach a stage to remove fluff from the paper and draw out the essence in ~10 minutes. It will also help make your mind fertile for new ideas.
Thirdly, graduate students, particularly PhD students, are helpful and can guide you. Remember, some of them are preparing for a future in academics. So, they are tuned in to guiding new students. But you need to do your work prior to approaching them. I also feel, you'll get more returns for your invested time if you meet PhD students.
I'll begin reading through some of their research and getting used to reading papers as you suggested. Should I go through their professor to get to the students or contact them directly?
As a high school student, I'm not sure what I can offer any ideas there?
I also get the impression from your post that I need to get more specific and engage graduate students that are working on projects. Should I possibly be asking the graduate students to work with them as opposed to their professor?